Parks & Gardens in London, Suffolk, & abroad
It is 31 May, and in three weeks’ time the sun turns round and heads south, but today has dawned grey, chilly, and windy again. In the garden the plants are doing surprisingly well, although some are clearly struggling to flourish.
The geraniums are winners and about to burst into abundant flower!
Two more winners, with forests of flowers!
Giants at two foot high already, and they are not yet flowering!
And all in quite a small space
Last week, one year ago, we scattered my mother’s ashes in a place which she loved. But those words don’t seem quite right. They make the action sound trivial, like throwing something away.
It was high up, the wind swirled and took the ashes, some touched us, and then there was silence. And I felt a release, a smile, and a travelling. The soughing of the wind again, never to be forgotten.
Yesterday, as I sat in St Mary le Strand, I remembered in the blue light, and then I lit two candles for my sister and me.
My mother woke me this morning. I didn’t open my eyes, I just lay still, and remembered the sound of her voice, and her scent. She came in the moment a year ago when we scattered her ashes – the wind swirled and soughed, and then it was silent. I sensed release, escape, peace. The church says ‘ashes to ashes, dust to dust’ but it didn’t feel like that and today I remember it also says ‘in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life’ and I wonder if it could be true. My mother certainly believed it.
She loved flowers and today I send her some roses from the garden.
OK, it doesn’t look great, but the taste was absolutely wonderful, and even after four days it is very good – fresh and toasted.
I used my basic bread recipe, learned at the first of only three evening classes in baking:
750 gms flour, consisting of 300 gms wholegrain flour, 300 gms spelt, 150 gms brown flour
1 tbsp golden syrup, 1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp dried active yeast
A large handful of raisins soaked in boiling water (which I added to the liquid)
c.16 fl ozs soya milk and a little water
I baked at 200C for 10 minutes, and then continued at 180C for 35-40 minutes
Oh dear! It seems we will have another difficult year in the garden. One warm weekend and now it is cold, wet, and windy again. The plants are struggling on, and some even seem to be thriving.
